First build: TB-4 bass

[Karl]

Hi everyone. Here's my first build diary. I've already done a lot of work on my kit so this will be a long first post.

How I got here: I'm a bedroom bass player and I've been perfectly happy with one instrument for years, but earlier this year I came down with a bad case of GAS. I couldn't resist it. I gave in and bought a fretless, but that only made things worse.

While browsing basses for sale I came across one of these kits and I knew I had to get one. Not only is it a more affordable way to acquire new gear, but the idea of putting it together with my own hands is very appealing. I sit in front of a computer all day for work so making something real is a nice change of pace.

I chose the TB-4 because I've always liked the look of Thunderbirds. Other pluses were the precut headstock and predrilled holes for the bridge posts, since I don't have much woodworking experience or tools.

The kit arrived quickly and everything looked good when I unpacked it. The only adjustment it needed was in the neck pocket. It was slightly too narrow. A little sanding solved that.


mock build


checking the alignment

It seemed like the action was going to be really high, and I've read complaints about the TB-4 bridges, so I got a replacement bridge from Hipshot. It barely makes a difference even with the saddles all the way down, so I may need a neck shim. No regrets though, it's a better bridge in other ways.

I also bought a new set of pickups, figuring the ones in the kit would be lousy. They came with pots that have larger diameter stems than the stems of the original pots, so I had to enlarge the holes in the body and buy new knobs.

I think I did a pretty good job on the frets, but we'll see what happens once everything is put together. I'd never done any fret work before.

I decided to go for a natural look on the neck. I used an oil-based wipe-on satin poly. It was very easy to use and I think it turned out well, though I put on more coats than I expected. I had a few "last coats" that caught a speck of lint or dirt or an air bubble. But it's finally done and it's nice and smooth.

I found someone on Etsy selling custom vinyl headstock decals in the Gibson font. I tried to think of something amusing and went with "Bigson". Just switch two letters around. It's also a nod to my kid who's 6'5" (195 cm).

I put the decal on after the first coat of poly so it had a nice smooth surface to stick to. With the rest of the poly on top, it's barely higher than the wood around it.

OK, now on to painting... To keep things simple I'm doing a solid color and using rattle cans. Primer, top coat, and clear coat are all Rustoleum enamel.

The body (it's basswood, so very soft) has a couple of very small dings that I wish I filled before I started painting. I thought they might be filled by the paint and primer, but that hasn't happened. They're not bad, most people may not even notice, but I see them. Lesson learned.


priming the body

I'm almost done with the top coats. They've gone a lot like the poly on the neck: mostly very good but I often manage to catch a bit of something from the air, like a piece of lint or a tiny flying insect.

I came up with a solution a few days ago: I have a wardrobe moving box that I can use as a spray booth. It has a metal bar across the top meant for coat hangers. A body or neck can be hung from it. Also, there are handle holes in the sides which I can pass a dowel through, then mount the body on the dowel. The other end of the dowel is clamped to my work table. I can rotate it as needed.


wardrobe box spray booth

This shade of green may not be everyone's favorite color but I wanted something a little unusual. I think it's going to look great with the all-black hardware and white pickguard.

My latest problem is the weather. I've been doing this work outside, and lately most days have been too humid for painting (I'm in the southeastern US). The temps are getting near the upper limit too. I'll try to be patient.

[Trevor Davies]

Looking good.
GAS is a serious problem so do take care!
I had to shim the neck of my TB-4 to get a low action - but it did not need much.

[Rabbit]

Yer on a slippery slope now! Once you do one build, there will be others....

[Karl]

Yer on a slippery slope now! Once you do one build, there will be others....

GAS is a serious problem so do take care!

No doubt about it. The next kit has already been ordered!

[Karl]

I gave the body a thorough sanding since the last coat of paint was a little rough. It feels very smooth now, but when it catches the light the former low spots sparkle because they still have some of their original gloss.



Do I need to keep sanding or will this not be a problem once it's clear coated?

[Simon Barden]

If you can get it flat now, it will make sanding the clear coat easier.

Paint (unless thinned very heavily or applied very thickly indeed) has too much surface tension to fill dips. It just follows the contours of what’s beneath it. So if you leave those shiny pockets now, you’ll then just need to sand the clear back in that area to remove the matching dips in the clear, which probably means a couple of extra coats of clear to give you the depth to do so.

It’s always best to get each type of coat as flat as possible before applying the next type. You then know that any small pits in the next layers are just in that layer, so you should be able to sand down without sanding through.

In terms of looks, small pits as in your photo, won’t show up with flattened and then polished clear coat over the top, but you’ll need to add more coats to avoid risk of sand-through, which slows up the whole drying/curing process.

[Karl]

It’s always best to get each type of coat as flat as possible before applying the next type. You then know that any small pits in the next layers are just in that layer, so you should be able to sand down without sanding through.

Thank you Simon. This is good advice.

[Karl]

I went back to work on it yesterday and made it very smooth, but the color is uneven in places where I've sanded away almost all of the topcoat, and there are two spots where I uncovered the primer. This really drives home the lesson about how much to sand before it's ready for finishing. Good to know for next time.

[Rabbit]

you’ll then just need to sand the clear back in that area to remove the matching dips in the clear, which probably means a couple of extra coats of clear to give you the depth to do so.

Even once you have the base colour smooth, it's still a good idea to add some extra coats of clear, unless the coats you have already put on are smooth. . More often than not you will end up with a slight orange peel finish which need to be sanded smooth before polishing.

[Karl]

I finally got the paint touched up and clear coats on. I'm waiting for them to cure before polishing. I'm excited that this is the last time I have to wait for something to dry or cure. After this I can make progress whenever I have free time.

Spraying in that wardrobe box is an improvement over spraying in the open but it's not perfect. It stopped the wind from adding "texture" and I didn't have any more insect suicide squads to sand out (this paint job is not vegan). But the box only has one open side so overspray swirls around inside and deposits more droplets of paint over time. I think that contributed a lot to the orange peel. Maybe some vents would've helped. In the end I sprayed a lot of coats and did a lot of sanding.